Car under frame



4 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

;B. BAGS HA.WE., GAR UNDER FRAME-i Patented Feb. -18, 1896.

INVENTOR WITNESSES 7f? 4 Sheets-Sheet. "2.

(No Model.)

' B. BAGSHAWE. GARv UNDER FRAME.

'Patnted Feb. 18-, 1896.

8 E S s E N H W W. yaw- (No Model.) 4 Sheet-Sheet 31 B. BAGSHAWB. GAR UNDER. FRAME.

No. 554, 41. Patented I'eb.- 18, 1896.

(No Mode l.) v 4 Shefs-Shet 4.

CAR UNDER FRAME.

Patented Feb. 18, 1896.

ANDREW H.6RMAM.PNOTB UTMQWASUINGTUN Dc 4 llNrrnn STATES ATENT FFICE.

BERNAL BAGSHAWVE, OF I-IEADINGLY, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO THE FOX SOLID PRESSED STEEL COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CAR UNDER FRAME.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 554,641, dated February 18, 1896.

Application filed October 2, 1894. Serial No. 524,700, (N0 model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BERNAL BAGSHAVVE, of I'Ieadingly, Leeds, England, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Car Under Frames, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in the methods of constructing the under frames for railway and similar cars in which longitudinal beams or sills extend from end to end of the car and support the flooring with any superstructure that may be attached to or rest upon it, as well as the draft-rigging or draw-gear and other appurtenances.

The object of my improvement is to produce a car under frame in which the weight of the empty car, including its under frame or its dead load, shall be small as compared to its maximum live or haulage load, or, in other words, the construction of a car under frame in which the maximum weight hauled per ton of dead load may be larger than is permitted by any method of construction heretofore used.

Incidentally my invention offers other advantages. It permits of a car under frame being most economically designed and constructed to support any form or distribution of loading. Further, it reduces the number of members or parts heretofore used in a car under frame, thereby lessening the cost of repairs.

A salient feature, also, of my invention is the opportunity it offers of forming the members or parts of the under frame of a car to standard dimensions, which in case of the injury of any member allows of its withdrawal and the insertion of a similar piece which may be kept 011 hand.

To these ends I construct a car under frame of a combination of rolled beams and bent, forged or pressed plates, which are attached to each other by suitable fastening devices for example, rivets or bolts, using either one or the other method of fastening alone or a combination of the two. I design chiefly,

however, to use the first method of fastening, thereby forming a riveted structure throughout.

o I will describe a car under frame embody ing my improvement, and then point out the novel features 'in claims.

My improvement will be best understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which similar letters designate corresponding parts.

In the drawings, in Figure 1, for the sake of clearness and as the two ends of the car under frame are similar, I have shown a plan View of a portion of a car under frame embodying my improvement, comprising a little more than half its length. Fig. 2 represents a side elevation of the same; Fig. 8, an

- end elevation of a carlunder frame represented in part in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 represents a sectional View on the line 4 4 of Fig. 1; Fig. 5, a sectional view on the line 5 5 of Fig. 1. Figs. 6 and 7 represent a plan view and a side elevation, respectively, of a modified form of construction. Fig. 8 represents an end elevation of the modification shown in Fig. 6. Fig. 9 represents a sectional View on the line 9 9 of Fig. 6; Fig. 10, a similar view on the line 10 10. Fig. 11 represents a view in perspective of one of certain pieces hereinafter referred to as spacing-pieces and shown at B Fig. 1.

Taking, for the sake of illustration, the construction set forth in Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, it

will be seen that the floor or under framing consists, in general, of longitudinal and transverse pieces. In these figures A A A A A A designate channel-beams extending from end to end of the car and adapted to support the top flooring and any superstructure or loading which may be placed thereon. For the sake of illustration I have represented six of these beams or sills, but of course do not confine myself to this number of beams, or any special size of the same, as they may be adapted in number and strength to support the loading which it is designed the car shall carry. These longitudinal beams or sills are connected with each other and held in place by sets of pressed or bent or forged plates, of which a number are represented at B B* B B B B B B B B extending transversely between adjacent beams. These plates are in the form of shallow rectangular coverless boxes, as-shown in Fig. 11,

consisting of a body or bottom plate I) and transversely extending edges 19* l) D U. They may advantageously be made by taking a single plate, and bending or pressing or forging its edges over transversely to the main portion of the plate, molding the bent portions where they engage with the beams or sills to suitably conform to the outline of the latter, as will be more fully explained hereinafter. For convenience of reference I will designate them as spacing-pieces, although they act not only in this function, but serve also to strengthen the structure in large measure. These spacing-pieces are represented as being intermediate of the extremities of the beams or sills, while the latter at their ends are connected with each other and held in place by plates 0 C forming the end sills. These end sills or plates are also preferably formed by bending or pressing or for ing plates of suitable dimensions. They are here shown as havinglongitudinal edges 0 0', extending over the top of the beams at and near their extremities, body portions 0 a bent transversely to the upper longitudinal edges downward and connecting the ends of the beams proper, while the opposite longitudinal edges are bent inward and upward, so as to engage with the under surface of the beams or sills. At the side edges these plates are pressed or bent in a manner suitable to engage with the outer longitudinal beams or sills. (See 0 and 0 That the longitudinal beams or sills may be suitably attached to the bent or pressed plates forming the end sills, I have represented them as being boX-ended-that is, beams having the web portion at their extremities bent or pressed over transversely to the-body or main portion of the web, forming in general a right angle therewith. Bolts or rivets may then be used to firmly secure the two together in the usual manner. The vertical portions of the bent or pressed plates 0 C forming the end sills are shown as having openings in the central portion G which facilitate the introduction and attachment of the draw-gear or draft-rigging.

\Vhile I prefer the method of forming the end sills represented, I do not wish to limit myself to this construction entirely, as I may, for example, attach angles or bent plates to the ends of the beams and by that means secure the latter to the end sills, or I may press or bend the plate for the end sills to a diiferent shape.

To more eifectually strengthen and tie the beams together, I provide elongated plates D D D extending transversely across the car under frame and secured to the outer side of the outermost beams by transversely-bent edges suitably fastened. These plates are placed interm ediate of the ends of the beams and are preferably placed directly over the above-mentioned spacing-pieces, one for each set of such pieces, as represented.

As ordinarily constructed, the body-bolster of a car, or that portion which rests upon the truck and transmits a portion of the load thereto, is of a greater depth at the center where the king-bolt is designed to pass through and for a short distance on either side than it is at the outer portions of the bolster at or near the sides of the car. It is the general practice, as well, to attach this bodybolster to the longitudinal beams or sills by belts or analogous means. I provide means for forming the bodybolster integral with the car under frame, and also a more e'lfectual method of combining the draft-rigging or draw-gear with the car under frame than in any construction used heretofore. The center longitudinal portion of the under frame I may form of two channel-beams A A", as Figs. 1, 4 and 5 represent, placed back to back and separated a short distance, leaving a space between them convenient for the attachment of the draw-gear to their inner surfaces in the neighborhood of their ends, as well as the insertion of the king-bolt. Angle or knee pieces formed of bent or pressed plates, attached to the center longitudinal beams orsills, are shown at a a 66 a, to which the draw-gear may be directly attached. This direct attachment of the draw-gear to the center longitudinal. beams or sills and not to a substructure attached to such beams is made possible by the employment of channels of sufficient depth to so secure them.

The outer longitudinal beams or sills, A A, are shown as having their upper surfaces in the same plane as the upper surfaces of the center beams, A A but their depth as being less than that of the center beams. The line, therefore, joining the under surface of the center beam with the under surface of the corresponding outer beam will be inclined upward. Intermediate beams, A A, whose depth corresponds to the ordinates at that point, are shown between the center and outer beams.

I preferably make the spacing-pieces before mentioned in the form of coverless shallow boxes having a uniform depth, but whose other view presents in general a trapezoidal form. This is shown at B Fig. 4-. It will be readily seen that the parallel sides of this trapezoidal box conform to the general contour of the adjacent faces of the connected beams, and that the inclined sides agree in general with the lines joining the upper and the lower surfaces respectively of the beams in question. Thus the body or main portion of a spacing-piece extends across from one beam to another, agreeing in general outline to the configuration of a corresponding trans verse section, while its transversely bent edges afford means for its attachment 011 all four sides.

At the bolster-sections D D, where the car rests upon the trucks, I have shown two sets of these spacing-pieces placed back to back,

space being left between the middle spacingpieces, B B in each set for the insertion of the king-bolt. To further strengthen the bolster portion and give to the same a finished form I pass plates E E from one side to the other of the under frame at these points, securing them to the outer beams by their bent ends, and also securing them to the sets of spacing pieces as well as the longitudinal beams or sills. To facilitate their a1 tachment to the bottom surfaces of the beams they may be secured thereto by means of beveled filler-plates f f While I consider the design of spacingpieces which I have represented as preferable, in which the transverse edges for securing the same are formed integral with the-body or main portion of the spacing-piece by bending or pressing the same, I do not wish to confine myself to this particular method of forming them or attaching them, but may use any other suitable construction-as, for example, I may use fiat plates and attach them by separate rolled or pressed angle or knee pieces.

To strengthen the under frame diagonally, providing against a distorting or collapsing stress, I may provide brace or strengthening rods extending diagonally from side to side of the car-frame at such an angle with the longitudinal beams as shall permit of the insertion of as many as may be thought desirable. Two sets of these diagonal brace-rods are represented in dotted outline at H H II II in Fig. 1. These rods pass through apertures in the longitudinal beams and spacing-pieces and may be threaded at their ends for engagement with nuts. Angle-pieces for correcting the angularity of the rods with the outer beams may be provided, as shown at I I I I.

As another means of strengthening, either alone or combined with the previously-mentioned diagonal brace-rods, I may use angle or gusset plates (shown at I) attached to the longitudinal beams and transverse plates at or near their points of crossing. These gusset or angle plates may be attached by rivets or other desirable means of fastening, and in such numbers as may be desirable.

I do not confine myself merely to the abovementioned methods of diagonal bracing, as I may use other methods either alone or in combination with those already mentioned. For example, I may use the method illustrated by Fig. 6. As there shown, these braces are formed of plates F, which are corrugated longitudinally. One corrugation only is shown but any number may be used. A brace of the kind represented may be formed by taking a corrugated plate of suitable length and bending its ends at such a distance from the transverse center line as to leave a center piece sufiicient for its attachment to abeam. The two ends or legs f f of the bent corrugated plate may then be extended across to the adjacent beam and their extremities bent at such angles as shall permit of their being Secured to the beam. Any desirable number of these corrugated bracing-plates F may be used.

Instead of making use of corrugated bracin g-plates bent in the manner above described, I may use corrugated plates bent or pressed near their ends only at an angle to the main portion, to provide for their ready attachment to the beams or spacing-pieces; or I may use auxiliary pressed or rolled angles or knees for attaching the corrugated plates.

While, for the sake of illustration, I have represented and described longitudinal beams or sills in the form of channel-beams, I may make use of any of the well-known shapes of beams to answer a similar purposeas, for example, I-beams, either using such throughout or combining their use with that of other forms. Fig. 6 represents a modified form of construction in which the longitudinal beams or center and outer sills K K K K consist of I-beams that are connected with each other by spacing-pieces similar to those already described. In this modification I have also represented the intermediate longitudinal beams or sills as being replaced by longitudinal bent or pressed plates is extending between adjacent spacing pieces. These longitudinal pressed or bent plates is are here shown as being box-endedthat is, having their web portion near the extremities of the plate bent over in a transverse direction to the length of the main web portion. Obviously, rolled or bent angle or knee pieces may be used for their attachment instead of making them box ended.

In practice, the distance from the track to the center line of the draw-gear oftentimes varies in different cars. If for any reason the center line of the draw-gear passes below the under surface of the longitudinal centerbeams or sills, it becomes necessary to attach a suitable arrangement of bent plates and knee or angle pieces L L to the center beams or sills near their extremities for supporting the draw-gear. This is shown in Figs. 6, '7 and 8. It will be observed that in this manner of construction of car under frames no trussing is necessary, either longitudinal or transverse, and that by choosing beams of varying depth from the center outward no substructure is required to be added to form the body-bolster, the form of the bolster being given by such longitudinal beams or sills and the spacing-pieces.

WVhat I consider as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a car under frame, the combination with longitudinal beams, or sills, of spacingpieces extending between and secured to adjacent sills, and which are made in the form of shallow open boxes provided with integral transversely-extending edges, substantially as specified.

2. A spacing-piece forming a part of a car under frame consisting of a bent, forged, or pressed plate provided with integral side flanges for attaching the spacing-piece to adjaeent longitudinal beams, or sills, and integral top and bottom flanges, substantially as specified.

3. A spacing-piece forming a part of a car under frame consisting of a plate bent, forged or pressed to the form of a shallow box, two of whose sides are substantially parallel to each other while the other sides are inclined to each other, substantially as specified.

a. In a car under frame, the combination of center longitudinal beams or sills, outer longitudinal beams or sills of less depth, and spacingpieces extending between and secured to the center and outer beams, and consisting of bent, forged, or pressed plates provided with integral side flanges for attach ing the spacing-pieces to the beams, and integral top and bottom flanges, substantially as specified.

BERNAL I-MGSIIAWE. lVitnesses:

(E. N. IRONSIDE, WM. A. POLLOUK. 

